Reptile Rooms

How sea turtle hatchlings use their flippers to move quickly on sand
Researchers conducted the first field study showing how endangered loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings use their limbs to move quickly on a variety of terrains in order to reach the ocean.

Study provides better understanding of how mosquitoes find a host
The potentially deadly yellow-fever-transmitting Aedes aegypti mosquito detects the specific chemical structure of a compound called octenol as one way to find a mammalian host for a blood meal.

Snake venom charms science world: Novel protein from king cobra as drug discovery
The king cobra continues to weave its charm with researchers identifying a protein in its venom with the potential for new drug discovery and to advance understanding of disease mechanisms.

El Niño and a pathogen, not global warming, killed Costa Rican toad
Scientists broadly agree that global warming may threaten the survival of many plant and animal species; but global warming did not kill the Monteverde golden toad, an often cited example of climate-triggered extinction, says a new study.

'Anaconda' meets 'Jurassic Park': Fossil snake from India fed on hatchling dinosaurs
Sixty-seven million years ago, when dinosaur hatchlings first scrambled out of their eggs, their first -- and last -- glimpse of the world might have been the open jaws of a 3.5-meter-long snake named Sanajeh indicus, based on the discovery in India of a nearly complete fossilized skeleton of a primitive snake coiled inside a dinosaur nest.

Pesticide atrazine can turn male frogs into females
The herbicide atrazine, one of the world's most widely used pesticides, wreaks havoc with the sex lives of adult male frogs, emasculating three-quarters of them and turning one in 10 into females, according to a new study. These changes occur at atrazine levels below what the EPA considers safe for drinking water. The changes skew sex ratios in the frog population and could be a major cause of amphibian decline worldwide.

How can accidental captures of loggerhead turtles be reduced?
Scientists have studied interactions between the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) and fishing gear such as longline hooks used at the water surface, mass beachings, and the effects of climate change on these animals. In order to reduce captures of this marine species without causing economic losses for fishermen, the scientists are proposing that fishing in the summer should only be carried out by night and in areas more than 35 nautical miles from land.

Evolutionary game of rock-paper-scissors may lead to new species
Morphologically distinct types are often found within species, and biologists have speculated that these "morphs" could be the raw material for speciation. What were once different types of individuals within the same population could eventually evolve into separate species. A new study supports this idea.

Scientists transplant nose of mosquito, advance fight against malaria
Scientists have successfully transplanted most of the "nose" of the mosquito that spreads malaria into frog eggs and fruit flies and are employing these surrogates to combat the spread of the deadly and debilitating disease that afflicts 500 million people.

Toads anticipate the timing and impact of their landings
Humans may not have a leg up on toads, at least not when it comes to jumping and landing, according to new research. Researchers shows that toads, like humans, are capable of anticipating when and how hard they're going to land after a jump and activating muscles important in absorbing impact accordingly.